Supporting Mobilized Employees

Do you have employees who also serve in the Guard or Reserve?  These days it’s often not a question of “if” but “when” they  will be mobilized for military service.  You probably also have employees who are married to military members or who are the parent of a young service member.  You may be wondering if there are ways you could show support for those employees when they are called up to serve.

Does your company currently acknowledge employees when they reach certain milestones, such as having a baby or attaining a certain number of years with the organization?  Perhaps you provide the new parent with a gift of a company logo-ed diaper bag or bib and a parenting book?  You can do something similar for the mobilized employee and his/her family.

A great resource I am happy to pass along is Elaine Dumler’s book “I’m Already Home…Again –  Keeping Your Family Close While On Assignment or Deployment“.  The book has 214 suggestions of ways for families and service members to stay connected before, during, and after a service member’s deployment.  There is even a section with suggestions for employers, schools and community groups who want to be supportive of the veterans in their communities.

Consider purchasing a quantity of these books to have on hand.  It’s a tremendous gesture of care to provide a copy of the book to the spouse or family member (or, directly to the service member to pass along) plus a letter of support from the company wishing the veteran a safe journey and hoping for a speedy return and the name and phone number of a point of contact in the company who can answer questions should any issues or needs arise during the employee’s mobilization.

Posted by Lisa Rosser, Author of and Speaker/Workshop Leader on The Value Of a Veteran(TM): The Guide for Human Resource Professionals to Regarding, Recruiting, and Retaining Military Veterans